02/05/31 We're all a bit mad here
02/05/26 Life goes on
02/05/18 End of story, right?
02/05/15 Election day
02/05/14 Blessed are those who mourn
02/05/12 Now, what?
02/05/11 Loss of innocence?
02/05/10 RIP
02/05/09 The sleep of reason
02/05/08 Voting for a dead man
02/05/07 The day after
02/05/06 Riots in The Hague
02/05/06 Pim Fortuyn murdered
02/05/04 A wandering mason
Death threats are in fashion this season, it seems. Former Labour leader Ad Melkert got sent one before the elections, along with a loaded gun. Sparta trainer and former international Frank Rijkaard got a letter with a bullet, as did Lijst Pim Fortuyn leader Mat Herben. I don't know what option disgusts me more: that the perpetrators are real nuts, or that they're pranksters looking for their 15 minutes of fame in the media.
Kogels erger dan poeder
And then there's the Gretta Duisenberg thing. She's a supporter of the Palestinian cause, and some weeks ago she started flying the Palestinian flag from her balcony. The people across the street complained, explaining that their children who live in Israel are under constant threat of attacks by Palestinian terrorists, and asking to remove the flag. The discussion became heated, and either the words "rich Jews" or "rich American pro-Israel lobby" (the exact words seem to depend on who's telling the story) got said. An anti-semitism complaint was filed. An attempt was made to have Wim Duisenberg, Gretta Duisenberg's husband and president of the European Central Bank, declared persona non grata in the United States. Eventually the flag was removed by Wim Duisenberg. The latest news is that Gretta Duisenberg received a death threat and that the police are looking into it.
'Dat bedoel ik nou met joodse lobby'
Mevrouw Duisenberg bedreigd
And now for something that actually cheered me up: more than 6,000 people over here have joined a political party since the elections on May 15th. About 1,500 have joined the Lijst Pim Fortuyn, the Socialist Party got 1,100 new members since the elections, 1,500 joined Labour and 1,000 the Green Left.
Politiek is in, ledental groeit
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Dutch politics in 2002
I watched an interview with one of the members of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn who was with him when he died, and I was reminded of how I felt after the sudden death of one of my colleagues - the guy was in his mid-thirties and just dropped dead off his bike on his way home one evening - years ago. And all that combined with the huge publicity and the pressure to perform...
In other news, the economy seems to be changing for the worse and unemployment may be up for the first time in years, and we still don't have a government. However, after their first reluctance to take part in a cabinet with the christian democrats and the Lijst Pim Fortuyn the conservatives now seem willing to negotiate. Jan Peter Balkenende, the leader of the christian democrats, wants a brief "regeerakkoord" (government agreement) that leaves the cabinet room to manoeuvre. Gerrit Zalm, former finance minister and now leader of the conservatives, wants a "regeerakkoord" that makes clear where government expenditure will be cut. Mat Herben, leader of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn, wants a general pardon for those illegal aliens who have become part of Dutch society and tougher immigration laws.
VVD wil snel afspraken maken
Five lawyers have asked the Amsterdam Order of Lawyers to take disciplinary action against Spong and Hammerstein. They claim that Spong and Hammerstein know that their lawsuit against several politicians and journalists has no chance of success, and they're damaging these politicians' and journalists' reputations, and the reputation of the lawyer's profession as a whole, by persisting and seeking publicity. Since Spong is said to have been approached by the Lijst Pim Fortuyn as a possible candidate minister of justice, the five state that his independence is dubitable.
Advocaten willen tuchtonderzoek tegen Spong en Hammerstein
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Dutch politics in 2002
And a new journal entry.
02/05/20 I couldn't help overhearing
The elections have drawn an incredible amount of media attention from abroad. My guess is that now the elections are over this will quickly diminish - the Netherlands have joined the European move towards the right, end of story. While, from my point of view, the story is only beginning. But I would say that, wouldn't I? After all, I live here.
Turning point...
As ever, none of the parties has achieved anything near an absolute majority in the parliament. To form a government, a coalition needs to be formed. This is done in a two step process: the "informatie" followed by the "formatie". The whole thing is not unlike the tentative courting between teenagers trying to get the best date for the school dance. Since 1945 it took an average of 67 days to form a cabinet; the shortest (in)formatie took 10 days (in 1958), the longest 208 (in 1977).
Formatie: een delicaat proces
The first step is that the queen is advised by the political leaders of all parties and a number of other dignitaries. As a result she appoints an "informateur". The "informateur" investigates different possibilities for coalition and comes up with a proposal, and in co-operation with the parties involved will also produce a draft "regeerakkoord" (government agreement). The "regeerakkoord" is the result of the negotiation process between the parties, with each party trying to get the most important issues from their party programs included in it.
The first round, the consultations with the party representatives, has taken place. As is customary a "prominent member" of the party that received the largest number of votes in the elections, in this case the christian democrat Jan Hein Donner, has been appointed "informateur".
Bewogen gesprek tussen lijsttrekkers en Beatrix
Een gespannen bezoek aan de koningin
CDA krijgt Donner als informateur
Enorme vechter blijft het liefst op de achtergrond
If the "informateur" fails to come up with a possible coalition he or she can give back the assignment to the queen, in which case she would probably appoint an "informateur" from the party with the next largest number of votes (in this case the Lijst Pim Fortuyn). If the "informateur" succeeds a "formateur" will be appointed, usually the later prime minister, who will actually form the cabinet and finalize the "regeerakkoord".
The christian democrat leader Jan Peter Balkenende has urged the Lijst Pim Fortuyn to change their viewpoint about asylum seekers if they want to be in a coalition with the CDA. "If they say that the Netherlands are full, they say that with an intention", he said. "LPF also state that there will be no extra money for health care and education. I don't agree with that, nor with their opinions about other religions. They need to show more respect in that regard."
Balkenende zet LPF nu al onder druk
Oude tijden herleven na acht jaar Paars
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Dutch politics in 2002
Election results after counting 91% of the votes (the numbers are numbers of seats in the 150-seat parliament):
| 1998 | 2002 | |
| PvdA (social democrats) | 45 | 23 |
| VVD (conservatives) | 38 | 23 |
| CDA (christian democrats) | 29 | 43 |
| Groen Links (green left) | 11 | 10 |
| D66 (political reform) | 14 | 8 |
| Christen Unie (christian union) | 5 | 4 |
| SP (socialists) | 5 | 9 |
| SGP (fundamentalist christian) | 3 | 2 |
| Leefbaar Nederland | - | 2 |
| Lijst Pim Fortuyn | - | 26 |
Ad Melkert, the current labour leader, has announced his intention to step down. Hans Dijkstal, who's led the campaign for the conservatives is expected to do the same, though he seems to be leaving the decision up to his party's members of parliament.
Mat Herben is still the spokesperson for the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. (They're expected to appoint a new political leader tomorrow. They're going to need a new chairman as well since Langendam has announced that he's resigning tomorrow.) His speech tonight did show some attempt at reconciliation, stressing that only the killer, and not any of the other parties or the press, was responsible for the murder on Fortuyn.
There are rumors that the three founding members of Leefbaar Nederland, Jan Nagel, Broos Snetz and Willem van Kooten are going to resign.
Since my early twenties I've voted even left of labor, so you can imagine I'm not a happy camper right now. Anyway, let me take a deep breath and make a guess at what happens next.
Cabinet formation. The most plausible option right now seems to be a coalition of christian democrats, conservatives and the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. One complicating factor is the Lijst Pim Fortuyn's lack of a party program, their candidates' inexperience and the instability that the party has shown in the past week. There is a wide-spread suspicion that either the formation of a coalition will be unsuccessful or the cabinet will fall within one or two years, and new general elections will need to be held.
In the long run, I think that for the Lijst Pim Fortuyn there are two possible scenarios:
1) they'll shrink and eventually disappear altogether, like what seems to be happening to Leefbaar Nederland and what has happened in the past with parties like Janmaat's far-right Centrum Democraten;
2) they'll stay around, drift toward the political mainstream and find a permanent place somewhere within the political spectrum. In the past this has happened with parties like labour (considered very subversive in its early days), D66 (like the Lijst Pim Fortuyn very much influenced by the ideas of one man when it started), the communists and the pacifist socialists (now both part of the Green Left).
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Dutch politics in 2002
In an interview with the Parool newspaper yesterday Peter Langendam, the new chairman of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn, has accused prime minister Kok, labor leader Melkert and Green Left leader Rosemuller of having incited hatred of Pim Fortuyn and thus sharing the responsibility for his murder. He also stated that he has "a very good idea about who should be Pim Fortuyn's successor. It doesn't necessarily have to be someone on the current list of candidates. He doesn't want to give more details. 'But we shouldn't get too few seats. Twenty isn't enough. Forty or fifty, then nobody can ignore us.'".
Leider LPF volhardt: kogel kwam van links
Today it was announced that Peter Langendam is going to resign as chairman of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn after the elections tomorrow. Initially he had planned to stay on until after the formation of the new cabinet. He's distanced himself from the accusations that he made in the Parool interview, claiming that the shock of Fortuyn's death caused him to say things that he regretted later.
Voorman LPF weg na harde kritiek partijen
Langendam (LPF) treedt af na verkiezingen
Lawyers Gerard Spong and Oscar Hammerstein have pressed charges against a number of politicians, journalists, the editors of a newspaper and the owners of several websites for inciting hatred, or publishing these incitements, against Pim Fortuyn. Spong was interviewed on television leaving the cathedral after Fortuyn's requiem mass, and he claimed that Fortuyn had asked him to do this in case he died a violent death.
De Graaf als lijsttrekker aangeklaagd
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Pim Fortuyn was chairman of the Politieke Vereniging Lijst Pim Fortuyn (the party) and political leader.
The party is being led by a number of friends and financial backers of Pim Fortuyn, who aren't on the list of candidates for parliament. Within the board there has been a brief struggle for power. John Dost announced in a television show on Friday that he's the leader of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. On Saturday Peter Langendam has been appointed chairman, with Dost vice-chairman.
Another story is who's going to succeed Pim Fortuyn as political leader. Indeed, the party hasn't been able to reach agreement on that (Winny de Jong and current spokesman Mat Herben being the main contenders) and the decision has been postponed to May 16th, after the elections.
Since the start of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn, people have been wondering where the money to finance the party was coming from. To a large extent it may have been coming from some wealthy real-estate brokers.
A number of key players:
Albert de Booij. CEO / owner of Speakers Academy in Rotterdam. CEO of Speakers Academy Uitgeverij B.V., which publishes Pim Fortuyn's books. He's a major share holder of the publishing firm; Pim Fortuyn was also a major share holder and a member of the board of directors. De Booij was second secretary of the Politieke Vereniging Lijst Pim Fortuyn (the party) and secretary of the Stichting Ondersteuning Lijst Pim Fortuyn (the foundation for support of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn). Together with Langendam, Dost and Fortuyn himself De Booij was a founding member of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. He was one people who were with Fortuyn when he was murdered. This week he announced that he would end all activity for the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. He stated that he had resigned from the party's executive board some time ago, and that he had intended to cease all political activity after the elections anyway.
Harry Mens. CEO / owner of a real-estate broking firm in Lisse. Presenter of an RTL5 television show called Business Class, where Fortuyn was a regular guest. When Fortuyn was still with Leefbaar Nederland Mens made an on-screen pledge of EUR 45,000 which he demanded back after Fortuyn and Leefbaar Nederland parted company. This week Harry Mens urged the Lijst Pim Fortuyn to withdraw from the elections and he urged voters not to vote for them.
John Dost. CEO / owner of a real-estate company in Rotterdam. Treasurer of the Stichting Ondersteuning Lijst Pim Fortuyn (the foundation for support of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn). One of the founding members of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. Announced himself as the new party leader in a television program on Friday, but has been appointed vice-chairman instead.
Peter Langendam. CEO / owner of a multimedia consultancy firm in Breda. Chairman of the Stichting Ondersteuning Lijst Pim Fortuyn (the foundation for support of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn). Secretary / treasurer of the Politieke Vereniging Lijst Pim Fortuyn (the party). This weekend, Langendam has been appointed chairman of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn party.
Sources (in Dutch):
FEM/De Week (9 March 2002), quoted by Jan Marijnissen in "Schrale rijkdom";
De Booij stapt op bij LPF;
'Langendam nieuwe voorzitter LPF'.
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Dutch politics in 2002
There's been talk about a loss of innocence here, or an assault on democracy. That may be true; on the other hand, it may be attaching too much meaning to what seems to be a random act of senseless violence by a nut with a gun.
We want things to make sense. A flawed man who might have become a mediocre and ineffective politician and who died for no good reason at all is, at best, tragedy. A good man who could have led the country to a better future if the forces of evil hadn't stopped him is the stuff that myths are made of.
The paradox of Pim Fortuyn
Support for the Lijst Pim Fortuyn may be on its way down. In the Volkskrant's "political stock market", where earlier this week the Lijst Pim Fortuyn was expected to win 27 seats in the 150-seat chamber, predictions now hover at 20-21 seats. Interviews held by NRC Handelsblad with 600 voters also indicate that the Lijst Pim Fortuyn may be losing support.
Polling will resume either this weekend or on Monday, though the polling agencies indicate that currently the situation is so uncertain that any information they come up with may have no value at all.
De Volkskrant, with the political stock market results
The NRC Handelsblad article
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There was a requiem mass for Pim Fortuyn in the Rotterdam cathedral this morning, and he'll be buried in his birthplace Driehuis this afternoon. In a few weeks he'll be re-buried in Italy in the village where he had his holiday home.
The mass was led by bishop Van Luyn of Rotterdam. In his sermon he stressed that at the end of life the important thing is what we've done for our neighbours, regardless of social or religious background.
Fortuyn buried after Dutch bid farewell
The future of the Lijst Pim Fortuyn seems uncertain at this point. I think the biggest problem is that, except for one 70-year old former member of parliament, the people on the Lijst Pim Fortuyn lack political experience, and as a group they also seem to lack cohesion.
Fortuyn was outspoken and wrote columns and books in which he strongly criticized the current government, but he didn't provide anything like a coherent and comprehensive vision on changes that should be made to address the problems that he saw. This means that on the one hand, lots of people will have huge expectations of the Lijst Fortuyn, but on the other hand the people on the Lijst Fortuyn will have very little to work with and, in all probability, will achieve little or none of the goals that Fortuyn set.
As for what will happen after the general elections on May 15th:
A left-wing coalition seems out of the question. Among Fortuyn's supporters there's a wide-spread feeling that the left's criticisms on Fortuyn have "created the climate in which the murder could happen". (I don't believe that's true, but I can understand the urge to hold someone responsible at this point.)
A more plausible option is a coalition of CDA (christian democrats), VVD (conservatives) and the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. There's a wide-spread suspicion that either the formation of a such a coalition will be unsuccessful or the cabinet will fall within a year. In both cases new general elections would need to be held, in which the Lijst Pim Fortuyn is expected to lose most of its support (and maybe end up with 5 seats or so like the current poll results for Leefbaar Nederland).
A third option would be the formation of a "national cabinet" in which all parties are represented.
Fortuyn's right-hand man
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The body of Pim Fortuyn lies in state in a half-open coffin in the Rotterdam cathedral. On the news it's estimated that 20,000 people have come to pay their respect.
Thousands flock to honour Fortuyn
All campaign activity has been halted right now (though there's discussion about starting it again after Fortuyn's funeral on Friday, if only to give his political party, the Lijst Pim Fortuyn, a chance to present their mostly unknown candidates to the public). Also, no polls are taking place anymore before the elections.
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An interesting twist: in the general elections on May 15th it will be possible to vote for Pim Fortuyn. His name is on the list of candidates, and Dutch law doesn't allow removing it. It's not impossible that a large number of people will vote for him as a protest against the murder.
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Dutch politics in 2002
BBC online coverage.
Dutch left reeling by assassination
A suspect has been apprehended yesterday. I heard on the news tonight that he worked with an environmental organization called Millieu Offensief (Environment Offensive). Apparently what he did for them was fighting court cases (maybe against companies that pollute the environment, it wasn't clear what exactly he did or why). According to a colleague who was interviewed on the news he had indicated that he was on the verge of a breakdown, but on the other hand he had just become a father and was very happy with his newborn child.
According to NRC Handelsblad the suspect was arrested six minutes after the first call to the emergency services. According to the police the man was in posession of a gun when he was arrested. Ammunition of the same caliber that was used to shoot Fortuyn was found at his house.
The general elections on the 15th will take place as planned. All prominent party politicians are sitting on their hands right now, since all campaign activity has been suspended. There will be no more polls before the elections either, so with regard to the outcome all bets are off.
Harry Mens, close friend and financial backer of Pim Fortuyn, has appeared on television last night and tonight and urged people not to vote for the Lijst Pim Fortuyn. He claims that Pim Fortuyn wasn't happy with many of the people who were on the list (and eligible for parliament), and that he wanted to get rid of a number of them. He urged people to vote for the "traditional" party of their choice, be it the christian democrats, the conservatives or the social democrats.
I believe the guy actually has a point. The Lijst Pim Fortuyn is a kind of a rag-tag group of people, many of them well-known people without political experience, who have little more in common than having volunteered and having been accepted for the job. This was already a reason for concern when Fortuyn was still alive, but even more so now he's dead.
In the media, Fortuyn seems to take on almost Lady Di-like proportions after his death (and I do hope I'm not offending anyone, as that isn't my intention).
Lady Di: people's princess;
Fortuyn: the man who "made politics interesting again and voiced people's concerns" (he was right-wing and populist; he was also an aggressive and witty debater).
Lady Di: the Morton book;
Fortuyn: his own books and his media appearances, where he pretty much told all about his sexuality, his feelings of loneliness and being destined for something special, his relationship with his parents, etc. In a number of recent TV appearances he discussed his feelings about
death and dying.
Lady Di: transformation from kindergarten teacher to princess to strong and independent beautiful young woman;
Fortuyn: transformation from scruffy Marxist intellectual to flamboyantly gay dandy.
And both, of course, a sudden and tragic death...
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Dutch politics in 2002
OK, still catching my breath here.
Pim Fortuyn was shot and killed shortly after 18:00, when he was leaving a radio studio after giving an interview. He walked to his car accompanied by two or three other people when a man walked up to him and shot him several times in the head, neck and chest.
The site where it happened is the so called Media Park in Hilversum, where the major radio and TV studios are. AFAIK the terrain is surrounded by fences and can be closed off from the outside world by gates. This actually caused 2 or 3 minutes delay for the ambulance because the gate malfunctioned and initially wouldn't open. Ambulance personnel tried reanimation but Fortuyn died shortly afterwards.
A suspect, a 33 year old Dutch white man, has been apprehended. According to the police, he's so far refused to make a statement and he's asked for an attorney (which seems like a wise move under thecircumstances). I seem to recall hearing on the news that he was arrested at the Media Park, which might mean that he was closed in after the murder and unable to leave the terrain.
There have been riots at The Hague near the government buildings, though things seem to be quieting down a bit. In Rotterdam, where Fortuyn lived and where he was in the town council, there are still long lines of people waiting to sign the condolence register at the Town Hall, and this is expected to continue all night. A number of people standing in line who were interviewed on the news indicated that they didn't agree with Fortuyn politically and wouldn't have voted for him, but they did want to show their support and indignation. In Rotterdam at the gates of Fortuyn's house and in Hilversum at the gates of the Media Park people gathered to burn candles and lay flowers.
All campaign activity has been suspended. The (now resigned) prime minister and members of the cabinet will meet with members of the Lijst Fortuyn tomorrow morning, and the cabinet is expected to decide tomorrow about whether or not the elections planned for May 15th will be postponed.
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Dutch politics in 2002
I just got home, and I just switched on the TV.
What I know so far:
When I walked home the streets seemed very quiet, I imagine a lot of people are watching TV. Which is what I'll be doing now as well.
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Dutch politics in 2002
In the journal: an encounter with a wandering mason.
02/05/04 A wandering Mason
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